“It’s a major expansion of our park system to have this many being built all at once,” Johnson said. “We haven’t seen this many in decades.”

The parks are clustered around three major housing developments in the northwest section of town.

All told, they’ll encompass 50 acres and will be connected by dozens of miles of trails and will be surrounded by more than 400 acres of open space.

The big difference this time around is that once these parks are completed, there will be little space left in the city for any new neighborhood parks; Arvada will have reached its goal, said Gordon Reusink, director of Arvada’s Parks, Golf and Hospitality department.

“This will be the last major buildout for our neighborhood park system,” Reusink said, noting that the city has 80 neighborhood parks. “Thanks to foresight, planning and agreements with developers, these parks and trail networks will be in place when the new populations arrive.”

He said an established population base usually has to live in an area for years; parks are built in phases as money becomes available.

Reusink said in these cases, the parks are city-owned but are being built by the various developers, who are paying the upfront costs of $15 million to $20 million. The developers will be reimbursed by fees paid by the new residents.

“The rest of the city should take comfort in knowing they’re not paying for parks that are far away from them, and that growth really is paying its own way,” Reusink said. “At the same time, they are available for the whole city to use.”

Another three parks are in various phases of development in the Leyden Rock community.

Further east, one park is completed in the 565-unit Whisper Creek Community, and another is in the design phase.

Walking her dog, Frannie, on a trail near Cimarron Park in the Candelas neighborhood, Melissa Wright said she lives south of the area and sees development as a mixed blessing.

“On the one hand, you get trails and parks that otherwise wouldn’t be built,” she said. “But on the other hand, you get all the challenges — and complaints — inherent with growth and new residents moving into your community.”

Eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 were closed Saturday afternoon at Georgetown due to a semitrailer fire, the Colorado Department of Transportation tweeted. The right lane remains closed, while the other lanes have since reopened. Drivers can expect heavy delays, transportation officials said. The fire initially closed both sides of the interstate as smoked crossed the highway. The load on the...